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Responding to the allegations, state Congress leaders have dismissed them as politically motivated, arguing that claims of intelligence surveillance are unfounded and exaggerated
The dinner meet, widely reported as a gathering of MLAs and ministers loyal to Shivakumar, took place at a Bengaluru hotel and was said to be a social event marking an MLA’s birthday. (News18)
The political temperature in Karnataka has soared as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) slammed the Siddaramaiah government over alleged misuse of the state intelligence apparatus following a recent dinner gathering of MLAs aligned with deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar.
The BJP has accused the Siddaramaiah-led administration of deploying the Intelligence department to monitor attendance at the dinner meeting held by Shivakumar’s loyalists—an allegation the ruling party has rejected as baseless.
Opposition leaders, including Leader of Opposition R Ashoka, took to social media to criticise the state government’s actions. In a post on X, Ashoka wrote: “So now State Intelligence has a new full-time job — tracking dinner attendance of DyCM DK Shivakumar’s faction? This is the complete politicisation of administration under CM Siddaramaiah. Karnataka deserves governance. Not surveillance politics.”
The dinner meet, widely reported as a gathering of MLAs and ministers loyal to Shivakumar, took place at a Bengaluru hotel and was said to be a social event marking an MLA’s birthday. However, political observers and opposition leaders saw it as a show of strength by Shivakumar’s camp amid ongoing leadership buzz within the ruling Congress.
According to media reports, several legislators and ministers close to the deputy chief minister attended the event, sparking speculation of internal manoeuvring within the state Congress unit. The gathering came at a time when there is heightened political chatter about potential leadership dynamics between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar.
The BJP’s charge against the state government centres on what it describes as “surveillance politics”, asserting that public administration and intelligence resources are being diverted from governance to track the internal movements of elected representatives. The opposition has said this is unprecedented and indicative of a government more focused on political battles than on delivering development and public services.
Responding to the allegations, state Congress leaders have dismissed them as politically motivated, arguing that claims of intelligence surveillance are unfounded and exaggerated.
The simmering feud has drawn attention to broader intra-party dynamics within the Congress in Karnataka, with several media outlets reporting on the growing prominence of Shivakumar’s faction and its interactions with other senior leaders.
As the political debate unfolds, the BJP has reiterated its demand that the Siddaramaiah government focus on governance issues and stop what it terms “using state machinery for factional politics.”
March 02, 2026, 10:40 IST
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